Have to improve my landings, says Dipa Karmakar

“It’s just like Delhi, the city and the stadium. I love the green alleys of the gymnastics hall,” she says excitedly. She’ll be right at home when she comes back to Rio, she confirms.

Read: PM Modi lauds Dipa Karmakar for her determination

It’s been part of her mental psyching up these last few years – coach Nandi trying to tell his ward to imagine that the venue where she’s competing – be it Glasgow or Incheon – is not too different from Delhi and the familiarity of IG Stadium’s environs. The ‘sight-seeing’ is about acquainting herself with a city where she plans to tryst with ultimate glory, with her sights set on August 14 – the date of the Apparatus final for vaulters. It’s an ambition that she’s kept burning for the last 15 years since she started in gymnastics.

She’s heard that India’s talking about her achievement, and lots of very famous VIPs have congratulated her on the social network, but cut off from it all in the host city of the Games she wants to leave the celebrations for later. Keen on a quick trip back home to Tripura, and a quicker return to Delhi to resume training, she is excited about the reception she’ll receive at the airport on landing, but is determined to not lose sight of the actual goal.

Read: Next objective is a medal in Rio Olympics 2016, says Dipa Karmakar

“There’s lots to do. I did decently well on all the four apparatus to qualify. But I was most stressed about the vault, because that’s my focus. Coach kept telling me I had to qualify, but I also wanted to do very well on the vault. Together, this is my highest score ever, but it can be better,” she says.

“Execution is everything in gymnastics. I have to improve my landings if I have to think of a medal at the Olympics,” she says, knowing unequivocally that when all the talk of her two difficult (and risky) settles down, it will be the nitty gritties of execution will be all-important.

Thinking of upgrade

While Karmakar’s never cribbed about facilities either back in Tripura or at Delhi’s IG Stadium and is quite content with the support she receives from the Sports Authority of India (SAI), the team of coach-and-athlete is looking forward to upgrading the existing facilities, with the Project officer travelling to Rio with the duo to check on details of what modernisation is needed.

Read: Tripura sports minister Shahid Chowdhury congratulates Dipa Karmakar

“The SAI DG has already given approval and we should be back in camp from first week of May,” she says. “It was good to win gold at the test event. It’ll be difficult but I will give my best at the Olympics,” she asserts.

If the lead-up to Rio was stressful for Karmakar, it was doubly so for coach Nandi. “I don’t remember when I’ve eaten or slept well last. I won’t deny it’s a lot of tension. But it was worth it. I am sure India realises how massive this is for an Indian woman,” he says. “But now I have to start thinking big. It’s about the medal now, nothing less. We can’t be happy just to qualify,” he states.

Read: Dipa Karmakar vaults into history books after qualifying for Rio Olympic Games 2016

The coach can’t stress enough on the enormity of the challenge. “See, putting your athlete on the vaulting table is always a lot of tension. These are a highly unusual set of movements that she performs, and I’ll always be worried till the routine’s over,” he says. The magic trick unglamorously is repetition in training. “We have to practice over and over again until the execution looks seamless. The target is to make the Produnova look smooth, where people who are watching say that Dipa makes the world’s most difficult vault look easy.”